


Blue Mountain with Ginger

by FallacyFallacy



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Birthday, Coffee, F/F, Fluff, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-09
Updated: 2018-05-09
Packaged: 2019-05-04 16:02:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14596596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallacyFallacy/pseuds/FallacyFallacy
Summary: Mystic Messenger, Jaehee/MC: coffee shop - making drinks for one another -15Written for Spring Fest.





	Blue Mountain with Ginger

“Doppio espresso, as always.”

It took a moment for Jaehee to react, halfway through rubbing at her sleepy eyes. “What?”

I set the mug on the table beside her, deep brown rippling on the surface. “Italian roast.”

Jaehee blinked. Her hair was still mussed from bed; it stuck out less now that she was growing it out, but the odd curls as it swept away from her neck and shoulders were no less endearing.

“You didn’t need to do this,” she said finally, even as her hands reached to curl around the warm ceramic. “It’s your birthday.”

My lips flattened as I tried to hide my smile. “You remembered.”

“Of course I did.” Jaehee stood, eyes clear, now, and warm. Her arms slipped around my back, bringing our fronts together, touching the matching prints of Zen in an absurd kiss. I could feel her body heat through the thin fabric, and the press of her breasts, and swallowed.

“You’re my partner, after all,” Jaehee murmured as she drew back, slowly enough for the close gaze to linger.

“Th-thanks.” I nodded my head bashfully. Awkward, I remembered my own mug, and raised it to my lips in lieu of speaking further.

But Jaehee put a hand on mine; I jumped so suddenly the drink almost spilled.

“Whoa! Sorry… but you should put that away,” Jaehee said.

“Why…?”

Jaehee smiled mysteriously. Hesitantly, I let Jaehee’s hand guide my mug to the table as well.

“Come with me.”

It only took a few moments to cross the small apartment – that, and one large step over Jaehee’s mattress in the centre. The morning air was cool against my legs beneath light sleep shorts, the wood smooth against my bare feet. Birds tweeted from some distant location, distorted by the narrow corridor of the stairwell.

It wasn’t unusual to enter the cafe at this time of the morning – while coffee could be brewed at any time, baking took time, and that was my primary duty – but there was still always something surreal about being inside a store at the break of day, seeing the light shine off the glistening wooden legs of the chairs stacked up onto the tables.

Jaehee headed immediately for the pantry, retrieving a crinkling paper bag of beans a moment later and taking it to the grinder. I leaned against the cold marble counter, watching carefully.

“You’re making me a drink…?”

“Not just any drink.”

The grinder was startlingly loud but Jaehee doesn’t even jump, staring intently at the beans. I leaned to one side, trying to catch a glimpse of the name on the bag, but before I could, Jaehee slid them in front of her, glancing with a smile for a moment over her shoulder.

“Well, you’re being mysterious.”

I coughed, my voice still hoarse, and it turned into a yawn.

“It’s in the group description. That’s the name of the app, after all.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if seven really did put that in there.”

“Must be mysterious at all times!” Jaehee abruptly declared, hand coming up to an imaginary pair of glasses and mouth stretching into a grin.

I snorted, and then doubled over with laughter. “Okay, you definitely need to impersonate seven more often! That was amazing!”

Jaehee huffed, head turned away again, and didn’t speak any further.

Not long after, the grinding sound ended, leaving my ears ringing for a moment. Jaehee took the container out with a clink, and then spent a moment examining the grounds.

“Does it meet your lofty standards?”

Wordlessly, Jaehee held the container out to me. Even before leaning in, the rich scent of fresh coffee wafted towards me, leaving me unable to resist the desire to stick my face in as close as possible.

Taking a deep breath, I groaned. “That’s got to be one of the best smells in the world…!” I murmured, still tasting that bitter sweetness on my tongue as Jaehee took it back.

“It’s about to get even better,” she promised.

Just as she would on any work day, she transferred the grounds into the brewer, setting the machine with two loud beeps that I had come to recognise – mocha.

“Ooh, letting me have something sweet today?” I grinned, feeling back with my foot for a stool and hopping up onto it. “This _is_ a good birthday!”

But Jaehee ignored me. Instead, she padded into the storeroom, disappearing for several long seconds.

 _Leftover pastry?_ I wondered, though it was early enough that my stomach protested any breakfast. However, the small basket Jaehee returned with was much more intriguing.

And when the first item was revealed, I almost wanted to fall from my stool in shock.

“You’re doing whipped cream!”

Jaehee’s smile grew a little wider as she took out the mixer, clicking the wands into place and plugging in the cord.

“I thought we weren’t allowing any of those _fancy, try-hard, overly sweet concoctions_ into our store!”

“Ah...well.” Jaehee ducked her head a little, placing a glass bowl on the counter somewhat sheepishly. “I don’t intend to make a habit of it… but today is a special day, after all.”

After that, talking was impossible, drowned out by the buzzy whirring of the mixer. I watched her, bottom lip ever so slightly bitten as she concentrated on the cream, strong arms shifting beneath thin cotton. It was spring, and so the fabric was thin – here and there, I could detect faint colour where the shirt pulled at her chest.

I swallowed, looking away.

When the buzzing stopped, silence didn’t return – now, the sound of bubbling filled the room, as the brewer finished boiling. Shaking off the last of the cream, Jaehee placed the mixer onto the counter and then ducked to take a mug, the largest we held in stock, out of the cupboard.

I leaned forward, sniffing the air like a cat as the mug was placed and the coffee was finally released from its restraints, pouring down satisfyingly into its cup. Already I was licking my lips, practically tasting that richness on my tongue.

But there was still more. Jaehee returned to the basket again and retrieved a small bottle – one I almost failed to recognise for a moment.

“I didn’t even know we had syrup here...” I murmured, before I realised the obvious with a blush.

“...again, I don’t intend to make a habit of it…”

Three drops went into the mug, deep brown swirling around Jaehee’s spoon. Then came a stick of cinnamon, almost too short to stick out of the tall mug.

I was sure my eyes couldn’t get any wider.

Finally, the whipped cream was arranged – a little clumsily, if I were honest. Jaehee frowned at the inelegant shape, but I only giggled, and she didn’t comment. And there came the last tool in Jaehee’s bucket – a shaker, dusting chocolate over the top.

And with that, the drink was complete. With just a touch of flourish, Jaehee pushed the mug over the counter, smiling proudly.

“Happy birthday,” she said softly, “partner.”

I swallowed thickly.

It would be stating the obvious to admit that the coffee shop was mostly Jaehee’s baby. It was her passion that had let the idea be plucked and formed to begin with, and her motivation that had pushed her to work out all of the picky administrative details necessary to ensure the dream was actually practically plausible. She was the one who had travelled to hundreds of shops around Seoul and even further, scoping out the competition and sketching out plans for the interior design and their menu. And so, when I allowed Jaehee to decide what kind of cafe we’d be working to make, it hadn’t been any kind of conscious stepping-back. I hadn’t even thought about it until now.

Had Jaehee thought about it?

I hadn’t minded following her lead in sampling Americanos and lattes when I joined her, sitting out in the open air and shivering in cold wind, laughing when Jaehee’s hair grew long enough to blow forward into her drinks. I always added milk and sugar, while she preferred hers black – it seemed like a very productive arrangement. And I genuinely, deep in my heart and soul, _love_ it when Jaehee’s eyes light up in real enthusiasm and joy as she expounds at length about where these beans were sourced from or how this specific degree of water temperature allows for the most complex taste.

But… I have to admit – I’m not as mature as Jaehee is. After practice, I can recognise the most important roasts, and even comment on how they were ground and heated, but it doesn’t really make _that_ much difference to I.

Hands shaking slightly all of a sudden, I retrieved a long spoon and slid it in, pulling it up with a small clump of cream on the top. The first touch to my tongue was a little too hot, but then a moment later, the liquid seemed to spread through my mouth, revealing a glorious bouquet of different flavours. There’s the chocolate, of course, and my favourite blend, and I think I can detect the note of cinnamon – and then ginger.

She remembered my favourite flavour!

...I’m not even sure how she found it out.

Jaehee was still smiling, eyebrows raised in anticipation.

“It’s delicious,” I said with feeling, finally breaking the tension in the air.

Jaehee grinned further, fist tapping against the counter. “Thank God. I was worried it would be too much...”

“No.” I took another spoonful, wanting to draw the drinking out for as long as I could. “It’s perfect.”

“An acceptable present, then?”

I swallowed again.

And then, almost without thinking, I raised my spoon.

“Try some?”

Jaehee stared at me for a moment. I tried not to flinch, holding the spoon in place even as my heart thumped.

Slowly, as though she were waiting for me to pull back at any moment, Jaehee leaned forward. But I held fast, and after a moment, Jaehee’s lips curled around the spoon. She closed her eyes; I twisted it slightly, transferring the liquid.

We remained like that for a moment.

Then, Jaehee opened her mouth and leaned back, licking her lips.

“…thank you,” she said, voice strangely high.

All of a sudden, I snorted. Had she even tasted it? Her cheeks were unusually pink, and there was just a touch of cream at the corner of her mouth.

I loved her so much.

“No – I’m the one who should thank you.” I stood up from the stool and came around the counter. Jaehee still looked a little flustered, but I didn’t hesitate a second before I reached forwards to hug her again.

I still wasn’t sure what exactly what kind of relationship we had – whether we were friends, or girlfriends, or something in between. But no matter what, I wanted to be with here wherever she went, building a life not just at her side, but _with_ her. And by now, I was pretty sure that was what Jaehee wanted, too.

“...thank you,” I murmured again, cheek against her warm neck. “I love it.”

“...I’m glad,” she said softly, and I squeezed her even tighter.


End file.
